Alberta Gaming Minister Dale Nally Confirms Early 2026 ‘Ribbon Cutting’ for Alberta Launch
Posted on: June 19, 2025, 09:34h.
Last updated on: June 19, 2025, 11:50h.
- Nally confirms iGaming market launch for early 2026
- Ontario tax rate 20%
- 3-year-old Ontario iGaming regulatory regime used as road map
Those iGaming operators and others industry types looking for updates on subjects like a launch date for the new Alberta market and tax rates probably walked away from Wednesday’s Dale Nally speech at the Canadian Gaming Summit a little disappointed.
In a 15-minute speech to a packed crowd at the Canadian Gaming Summit, the industry event going on this week at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Alberta’s minister of service and red tape reduction first touched on the Edmonton Oilers and their loss in the Stanley Cup Finals on Tuesday night.
Then he lauded his province as a place friendly to business and investment, with low tax rates and little red tape, its low cost of living, and affordable housing. Nally didn’t reveal much else in terms of launch details regarding Alberta’s new iGaming market, though.
There’s lots of you today that want me to tell you about our advertising, about our tax rate, about things like that,” he said. “We haven’t answered those questions yet. So in terms of next steps, we’re participating in consultations.
“In term of timeframes, I can’t give you a month, but I can tell you early next year, we’re going to be cutting the ribbon on iGaming in Alberta, and we’re very excited to be able to offer that,” Nally said. “We’re going to have more to share with you in the near future.”
Ontario Model a “Road Map”
The three-year-old Ontario model is being used as a “road map,” Nally said, adding that there are ongoing consultations between Alberta officials and industry people from Toronto.
I will be going back to my Cabinet colleagues in the fall, and we’re going to be talking about advertising standards and tax rates, and then we’re going to make these difficult decisions because there’s a lot of emotion on the table when it comes to how should athletes participate in gambling,” he said.
“Because of our high disposable income in Alberta, we work hard and we play harder, and nowhere is that more evident than in our disposable income when it comes to gambling, recreational gambling. Albertans embrace gambling as a recreational activity.”
Bill 48, which passed through the provincial legislature in May and is now law, will create the Alberta iGaming Corporation to oversee regulated online gambling operations in the province, prioritizing consumer protection and responsible play.
Buzz Around Nally Summit Speech
Alberta Gaming, Liquor & Cannabis (AGLC), which oversees PlayAlberta, currently the province’s only legal, regulated site for sports betting and online casino will be the iGaming regulator.
The corporation will be governed by a board of up to seven directors appointed by Minister Nally.
Operators like PointsBet, theScore BET, NorthStar, FanDuel, DraftKings, and others all lined up to jump in and take on the government’s Play Alberta platform.
The Ontario market, which launched in April 2022, has a tax rate of 20%.
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